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Fanbase Press seeks to provide an outlet for up-and-coming and established creators to showcase their work and reach new audiences. In order to assist in this promotion, Fanbase Press accepts review requests from various entertainment mediums (comic books, TV shows, novels, movies, theatre, video and tabletop games, and more) for the purpose of having our staff and contributors provide thoughtful reviews of the material. Fanbase Press holds a high regard for creators and the amount of work required when producing a new project. For that reason, all reviews reflect honest and considerate coverage of the material while providing constructive feedback when necessitated.

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For the past eight years, Fanbase Press (formerly Fanboy Comics) has provided thoughtful reviews and coverage of various properties within the geek genre. The staff and contributors of Fanbase Press love bringing content by both professional and indie creators to a larger audience, so that we can provide support and empowerment for creators and the arts while celebrating fandom in its many forms.

With that in mind, we want to provide that same opportunity for growth and experience to interested writers who would like to work with Fanbase Press as contributing reviewers, and we are always accepting applications for new contributors!

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Christina Brookman knew from a young age she was destined to marry Superman. Unfortunately, her neighbors foiled her attempt to jump off the roof, so Superman would save her, instantly fall in love, dump Lois Lane, and fly off together into the sunset. With her dreams crushed, she focused her energy on theatre. Christina started out as a child actor and went on to earn her B.F.A. in Acting from Point Park University, where she received The Kennedy Center Award for Assistant Direction for My One and Only. She was raised in Richmond, VA, where she served as the Arts in Education Assistant for Theatre IV, Outreach Theatre Instructor for SPARC, as well as Head of Performing Arts for Cat’s CAP summer camp. Christina’s Chicago credits include: Company Member for Flow Artistic Sketch Group, Associate Producer for Single File Festival, and Stage Manager for The Second City Training Center. Favorite past roles include: Janice (Crumble: Lay Me Down, Justin Timberlake), Thomasina (Arcadia), Maggie (Lovers), and Clarice (Servant of Two Masters), for which she was nominated for a Richmond Theatre Critics Circle Award for Best Supporting Actress. Most recently, she taught theatre at Toledo School for the Arts and Toledo Repertoire Theatre. Christina writes plays for young audiences and works to raise awareness about living with disabilities through her writing. She is thrilled to be a part of the Fanboy Comics team and really hopes this scores her some points for when she finally meets Superman!

Claire Thorne (née Clarissa) is a small-town girl who transplanted to the big city with few regrets that aren’t completely made up for by having a Starbucks within constant spitting distance. Growing up in the lawless wilds of New Mexico and Arizona, she eventually landed at The Grand Canyon but completely took for granted the view from her own backyard.

Upon landing in Los Angeles in the nineties, she did her best to avoid riots, collected a highly valuable liberal arts degree, found herself a husband, and settled down in a suburb voted “Easiest to Escape From in the Event the World Ends.” She encourages her artist husband to draw more zombies than is healthy and frequently fights with her school-aged son over who gets to put their latest LEGO set together.

Claire is preparing for the inevitable Zombie Apocalypse by teaching herself to sew quilts decorated with geeky embroidery. She hopes to one day take over the world through a cleverly disguised Etsy store. She avoids any and all mention of her “day job.”

She would very much like to see Tom Waits perform live, in person, preferably on the International Space Station.

At this very moment, she is reading about the end of the world and wondering what her next tattoo will be.

Desmond Walsh

Desmond Walsh is the only Director of Concept Development for the Aero Space Defense Industry with Secret Level Clearance who also writes and illustrates comic books. Although this has not been measurably proven, it is very likely a fact based on many awkward and short-lived conversations started by Des about comic books with high-ranking members of the Department of Defense.

Des attended Massasoit Community College, Syracuse University, and the Stern School of Business at New York University while achieving a Bachelor’s Degree in Industrial Design and a Master’s Degree in Business Administration with a focus on finance. This lengthy and very expensive educational background was clearly the ideal choice for anyone wanting to work in comics.

Des is thrilled for the opportunity to provide content to Fanbase Press and is looking forward to many long conversations about comic books…. or ballistic helmets or body armor or air crew helmets or digital night vision or impact protection. He is well versed in all of these areas and can be reached at DesmondMWalsh (at) gmail (dot) com.

Erica McCrystal lives in New Jersey, where she dabbles in various activities from triathlons to collecting penguins. She earned her Ph.D. in English from St. John’s University, writing her dissertation on urban Gothic supervillains. She currently does a little teaching, a little writing, a little coaching, a little editing, and a lotta momma-ing.

If Erica were stranded in a deserted Gotham City, she would want the complete works of Charles Dickens, running shoes, and a flashlight.

Erik Cheski

Erik Cheski is an actor who works in a Diamond Certification Lab, where he comes into contact with chemicals and equipment that would make for a great origin story. Having lived in the fantasy worlds of books, video games, tabletop games, and the absurd realm of theatre for longer stretches than the normal one, it’s somewhat a surprise that only in recent years he’s begun picking up these picture books and diving into their world, too. He’s always looking for stories that resonate, and he loves finding them in the oddest of places. He mourns the passing of the Star Wars EU and is hoping to watch, play, read, and know everything ever, a work perpetually in progress.

Gabe left a successful career as a high school teacher and moved to Los Angeles to pursue his passion for writing and entertainment. He’s an avid pizza enthusiast, he’s surprisingly good at pub trivia, and he finds inspiration from the films of Kevin Smith and the novels of Neil Gaiman. He co-hosts a weekly Futurama fan podcast called Another Lousy Millennium, and part one of his first comic, For Molly, is available for free on his website. He's originally from New Jersey.

J.C. Ciesielski is a writer/actor/snark junkie living in Pittsburgh, PA. He enjoys anime, movies, manga, video games, and the like. You can usually find him doing one of those things, probably while enjoying a frosty beverage. He really enjoys making fun of stuff, but it doesn't come from a mean place, just finding the humor in everything. For example, that shirt you're wearing. Be sure to add him on Twitter and say, "Yo!"

Jeremy Schmidt is a writer/comedian based out of Los Angeles. He is a regular performer at the UCB theater and hosts, not one, but TWO podcasts (@realitybitspod and @vgacomedshow both on iTunes). To follow him on Twitter is to be seated promptly at a nice Italian restaurant, and upon opening the menu, a note tumbles into your lap. You open the note carefully, revealing it to be the canvass for a hilarious (pretty good) joke written by a handsome (average-looking) stranger giving you a thumbs up (too embarrassed to connect) from the bar (bathroom).

Joshua Desjardins is getting nerdier by the minute thanks to Fanboy Comics. His new love for comic books, obsessions with all things Star Wars and Harry Potter, his appreciation for video games, and his fascination with technology help make him New York City's favorite nerd. He even has his own cabaret show entitled "Nerds Among Us" to prove it!

Born and raised near Boston, Massachusetts, Joshua earned his B.F.A. in Musical Theatre at Point Park University in Pittsburgh, PA. After college, he had the fortunate opportunity to work with Cabaret Pittsburgh, where he was lucky enough to work alongside legends such as Elaine Stritch, Stephen Schwartz, Tom Wopat, Amanda McBroom, and more!

In 2008, Joshua moved to New York City and never looked back! While still pursuing his dream of performing on Broadway, he also enjoys video editing and designing websites for fellow actors. For more about Joshua, check out his website at www.joshuadesjardins.com or follow his blog at www.nerdsamongus.com. #spreadthenerd!

From alternating Batman and Green Lantern as childhood Halloween costumes, to getting punched in his adolescent heart by Love & Rockets, to playing convention sidekick to the legendary Len Wein, comics have been a part of Kevin's entire life and are his favorite artform.

Leon Ninham Ollie Bird-Conliff (who prefers Leon Conliff when he's in a hurry) always knew he wanted to write for as long as he's been able to hold a pencil. Born in a barely noteworthy suburb of Columbus, Ohio, Leon comes from a family of artists. His father Steve Conliff was an activist writer in the 1970s involved in works such as Blacklisted News: Secret Histories from Chicago, '68, to 1984, and his brother Nicholai Conliff published the tragic vampire tale, Unburied in 2013.

With big shoes to fill, Leon set out for Los Angeles in 2014 in the hopes of carving out his own respectable place in the literary world. His first success came in the form of MANIA, a short-lived comic series about superheroes, robots, and mental health. From there, he provided his talents on Blood & Steel Books 3 & 4 for the tabletop game, Pathfinder.

Comic books, video games, D&D, and everything nerdy have always been a part of Leon's identity, and he revels in the opportunity to express his love for nerd culture while also honing his writing skills. When he isn't writing reviews or working on his next book, Leon runs a few biweekly D&D games and watches cartoons with his significant other.

Madeleine Holly-Rosing

A TV, feature film, and comic book writer, Madeleine is the winner of the Sloan Fellowship for screenwriting and the Gold Aurora and Bronze Telly for a PSA she wrote and co-produced with Women In Film. She also won numerous awards while completing the UCLA MFA Program in Screenwriting.

BOSTON METAPHYSICAL SOCIETY webcomic is the recipient of an Honorable Mention at the 2013 Geekie Awards and was nominated for Best Comic/Graphic Novel for the 2014 Geekie Awards. The comic has also been nominated for a 2012 Airship Award, as well as a 2013 and a 2014 Steampunk Chronicle Reader’s Choice Award. Her novella, Steampunk Rat, was also nominated for a 2013 Steampunk Chronicle Reader’s Choice Award.

She currently has novelettes and novellas available in all eBook formats based on the BOSTON METAPHYSICAL SOCIETY universe. Her goal is to eventually develop a series of novels based in this world.Formerly a nationally ranked epee fencer, she has competed nationally and internationally. She is an avid reader of Steampunk, science fiction, fantasy, and historical military fiction. In addition to her M.F.A. from UCLA, Madeleine also holds a B.A. in Politics from U.C. Santa Cruz and an M.A. in Arabic and the Cultural History of the Arabs from Columbia University in New York.

Madeleine lives with her rocket scientist husband David and two rescue dogs, Ripley and Bishop.

She is represented by Melissa Rogal at Lichter, Grossman, Nichols, and Adler.

Michael Fitzgerald Troy is a deeply superficial person. He writes Wonder Woman Wednesday and various other things for Fanbase Press.

Writer, artist, and actor, Michael's first published book was Homo-Hero's Big Book of Fun and Adventure. Michael also self-published The Blonde Squad (a comic about shallow, blonde superheroes) and Going Gaga! (a Lady Gaga tribute comic.) He has contributed to Instinct Magazine and various other publications. Michael also co-created and supplied the art for the short-lived Rocket Boy online comic strip.

Michael has performed stand-up comedy at every major comedy club in L.A., starred in the cult classic A Minute with Margot, (Lampooning Superman's Lois Lane waxing nostalgia about her hay day), and even made a brief appearance in an episode Keeping up With the Kardashians. (Don't blink or you might miss him!)

In addition to his contributions to Fanbase Press, Michael is working on various other projects, including a possible return of The Blonde Squad, a possible return to the comedy stage, and other "possibly" exciting things.

Nicholas Diak is an academic author who writes about the fringes of popular culture: Italian genre cinema, post-industrial and synthwave music, H. P. Lovecraft, and retro-modernism to name a few. He has contributed essays to a variety of journals and academic anthologies and is the editor of The New Peplum: Essays on Sword and Sandal Films and Television Programs Since the 1990s. He is one of the co-creators and co-chairs of the Ann Radcliffe Academic Conference. He lives in Orange, CA, and enjoys cooking, cocktail making, video games, pinup, and tiki culture.

Paul Pakler was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, where he first started acting professionally at the age of ten. He graduated from Point Park University, summa cum laude, with a Bachelor of Fine Arts Degree in Acting. Paul was also presented with the Raymond Laine Outstanding Senior Award by Point Park’s Theatre Department.

Paul currently lives in New York City, but he has acted all over the country (and once in The Bahamas). His skills as a character actor have led him to portray an array of roles and genres from broad physical comedy to intense drama. For his performance as Ray in Joe Penhall’s Some Voices, Paul was awarded the OC Weekly Award for Outstanding Lead Actor, 2005.

In college Paul was a founding member of the sketch comedy group The Animal Club where he functioned as a writer as well as an actor. Since that time Paul has written spec scripts, one-act plays, sketches and songs. Last year he produced a workshop of A Night at the Agora, a comedic one-act that he co-wrote with Christopher Warren Gilbert. Paul is currently developing a pilot script for a sitcom about homeless people in New York City titled Welcome to Paradise.

Recently, Paul has begun performing as a guitar comic around New York City. He has performed at The Gotham Comedy Club and The Underground Lounge.

He imagines them waiting in anticipation for an answer, wondering: Who is Phillip Kelly? I was once told by a friend that what we do defines who we are. I like to tell stories. A lot. I’ve been accused of this, as if it was something to be held against me. Especially by my mother who always “caught” me in what she would call a “lie” . . . to each their own. Today, other than a few people, the entirety of nature and the pizza place just down the street, without hesitation, I can safely say – yes, I love stories more than anything else. Here are the ways in which I tell stories: acting; standup comedy; the silent half of the vaudeville duo, Mr. Snapper and Mr. Buddy (www.snapperbuddy.com); the very vocal Jeremy Gayhorse and other comedy characters; filmmaking as a screenwriter, director, editor, producer; I have dipped my toes into the world of writing indie, self-published comics (which I will return to soon); writing/directing for live theatre/sketch comedy, which I have produced more than my fair share of; and tap dancing. I love movies of all kinds, classic lit, video games, opera, jazz, music, etc., and I spend way too much money on comic books every week. Oh, and peanut butter. I love peanut butter. So, to answer the question fairly and without bias: Who is Phillip Kelly? I like to think of myself as peanut butter.

Russ Pirozek is a Michigan transplant now living in Southern California. From an early age, he embraced being a nerd and intended to work in video games as a concept artist. It was while in art school that he discovered that art is super hard, and he wanted to be a writer anyways.

Now, a few years into that dream, Russ is a published freelance comic book writer and avid loud-talker about television, movies, gaming, and comics.

His Twitter is @RSPirozek, just in case you wanted to see him not tweet.

Steven W. Alloway is a freelance writer living in Los Angeles. Professionally, he writes articles about Internet Marketing and occasional blog posts about air conditioning, as well as a variety of other topics that are not as boring as they sound. In his spare time, he writes sci-fi and fantasy stories, which are also sometimes about air conditioning. He's the author of the short story "The Man in the Mirror," which was recently published in the fantasy/crime anthology "Mortis Operandi," as well as the children's sci-fi story "Riley and the Paranormal Phenomenon." Both are available on Amazon, if you care to look.

A lifelong theater geek, Steven also runs the community theater troupe Spirit OnStage, as well as its film offshoot, Spirit OnScreen, which between them produce plays, short videos, webseries, and other forms of entertainment, on a virtually nonexistent budget. Having grown up with Star Trek, Star Wars, and Doctor Who, his dream is one day to create something that inspires a fandom.

In his spare time, Steven enjoys reading, baking, and watching movies. If this writing thing doesn't work out, he hopes to pursue a second career as a time traveling secret agent.

Tony Caballero discovered comic books after his father left a box of them behind in the divorce. He got the better end of the deal, and a lifelong love of storytelling was born. Condemned by prophecy (and teachers and his own wicked soul) to be a writer, he received his B.A. in Film/TV from Chapman University and his M.F.A. in screenwriting from UCLA. In addition to his day job, Tony was the Literary Director at the Attic Theatre in Los Angeles, directing the Southern California premiere of Starcrossed (www.starcrossed.biz) and is currently the Director of Publicity for Whedonopolis.com and a writer/executive producer on The Katniss Chronicles. His most recent movie, Magic Beyond Words: The JK Rowling Story, was produced by Lifetime.

Xian Tan is an esoteric mess. He’s wanted to be an elephant conservationist, a paleontologist, a marine biologist, a writer, and a goatherd. He earned a B.S. in Molecular Biology (with minors in English Lit and Math) and a Ph.D. in Marine Biology. (Well, that’s a life goal accomplished.) Naturally, he’s an Assistant Professor of Biology at a Historically Black College/University where he frequently references Disney and pop-culture in class. Other than his contributions on Fanbase Press, his assorted musings can often be found on SlayAlive, a Joss Whedon-centric fan forum.

Bryant Dillon is the co-founder and President of Fanbase Press. He has a passion for many interests, having filled the positions of actor, director, writer, and artist on a number of projects. His writing credits include Fanbase Press' first two graphic novels, Something Animal and Identity Thief. He is also an actor, writer, and executive producer on the fan-produced audio drama, The Katniss Chronicles.

Barbra Dillon is the co-founder and Editor-in-Chief of Fanbase Press, an Eisner Award-nominated publishing company that seeks to produce new and distinctive works that give voice to the themes, ideals, and people that make “geekdom” so exceptional. She is also the Director of Marketing Operations for Gemelli Biotech, as well as a voice-over actress with credits including The Katniss Chronicles (Katniss Everdeen) and Pendant Audio's Phantom Canyon (Clara).

Andrew Siragusa hails from the ostensibly fictitious-sounding village of Fredonia. The harsh Western New York winters forced our young lad to stay indoors frequently, so much of his childhood consisted of watching movies or staging plays with his sisters and cousins.

If you asked him what he wanted to be when he grew up, he would have given one of two answers: either an astronaut or Spider-Man. As he got older, he realized the impracticality of both options, so he landed on the reasonable goal of being a screenwriter.

In 2007 he moved to Los Angeles and made the cross-country road trip from New York to California in just under two days.

He received several screenwriting awards from his school’s short film festival. They are currently on display above his father’s television. Most recently, he was featured on Google maps.

He is still waiting for that damn radioactive spider to bite him.

SEAN FOSTER Graphic Designer and Head of Lightsaber Maintenance and Repair

Sean Foster was born and raised in Washington, DC. He went to college at Point Park University, majoring in film and video. Raised on comics, anime, and video games, he has become the geek boy you know and love today. Spider-man is his hero, and Star Wars is his bible.

Sean has loved to write and draw ever since he was a child. He also started making movies on his parents' video camera at the age of 7, where he would write, star, and direct in every film. Right now, Sean works at Drinkmore Water just outside of DC and is saving up to make the move to Los Angeles, where he plans on making a career as a voice actor.

Jodi Scaife was born in Salem, Massachusetts, but, despite her parents’ upbringing, the universe was determined to try to mold her into a Southern lady as her family relocated to Austin, TX, before she hit the tender age of two. The universe’s attempt to mold her into something classy and cultured failed miserably, as Jodi was a wild tomboy from the moment she could walk. The one thing that could slow toddler Jodi down was a good book, and she developed a deep love of reading from a very young age. She continues to love reading and jokes that she will read anything she can get her hands on, although she will draw the line at gossip mags and car guides. Austin has gotten under Jodi’s skin, and she seems to always end up back there, even though she has lived in San Antonio and Nagoya, Japan, as a college student. She has studied Spanish, German, Chinese, and Japanese and can fake fluency in Spanish and Japanese.

Jodi is owned by five dogs and three cats who do not always approve of her love of anime, manga, books, comics, and anything else geeky that distracts her from her job as their caretaker.

Michele Brittany is an independent popular culture scholar who is the editor of James Bond and Popular Culture: Essays on the Influence of the Fictional Superspy (2014) and the Bram Stoker-nominated Horror in Space: Critical Essays of a Film Subgenre (2017), both from McFarland & Company. Additionally, she serves as the Book Review Editor for the Journal of Graphic Novels and Comics.

She is also a freelance journalist/photographer, having worked with Bleeding Cool (online and print), The Beat, Heathen Harvest, Comics Forum, and TrueAchievements. She has presented at Southwest Popular Culture Association, WonderCon as part of the Comics Arts Conference series, and at the Ann Radcliffe Academic Conference, which she also co-chairs. In addition, she has moderated panels at Long Beach Comic Expo, Long Beach Comic Con, WonderCon, as well as at San Diego International Comic-Con.

Finding free time between writing, editing, and working a full-time day job, you can find Michele writing her first book on mummies, reading, hanging with her kitty, watching Netflix, or playing video games. (Assassins Creed: Origins is her new favorite, along with Witcher III: Wolf Hunt!) She is sure that, in a former life, she was a medieval cat herder.

Travis likes to turns his writing talents toward the creative realm, which he plans to make a full-time reality at some point. He hopes to publish a collection of his short stories ranging from general to science fiction, and has self-published three books in the Weiland Kershaw series, with the fourth currently in edit.

He grew up on Star Trek: The Next Generation, video games like Legend of Zelda and Kid Icarus, and playing basketball almost every day of his youth. His favorite comic books early on were X-Men, Uncanny X-Men, and WildC.A.T.S. The book that catapulted his love of science fiction happens to still be his favorite – Sphere by Michael Crichton.

Now, his wife and kids drive him to keep doing what he loves, because he wants his kids to know it’s okay to go for it. His go-to show is still TNG, but close behind all-time are Fringe and Lost. His ultimate goal is to be a fiction writer of novels, short stories, comic books, TV shows, or movies.

Fanbase Press celebrates fandoms and creates new ones! As a comic book publisher and geek culture website, Fanbase Press produces new and distinctive works, as well as daily reviews, interviews, and podcasts, that span the pop culture spectrum and give voice to the themes, ideals, and people that make geekdom so exceptional.

The company was founded in 2010 (originally under the name Fanboy Comics) by Barbra and Bryant Dillon and Sam Rhodes and rebranded to Fanbase Press in May 2016.